EC
22019
PostgreSQLERRORNotableData ExceptionHIGH confidence

invalid escape character

What this means

SQLSTATE 22019 is raised when an ESCAPE clause in a LIKE or SIMILAR TO expression specifies a multi-character string or an empty string, which is not a valid escape character specification.

Why it happens
  1. 1LIKE ESCAPE specifying a string with more than one character
  2. 2LIKE ESCAPE specifying an empty string
How to reproduce

LIKE with a multi-character escape string.

trigger — this will error
trigger — this will error
SELECT * FROM items WHERE name LIKE '50!%' ESCAPE '!!'; -- two chars

expected output

ERROR:  invalid escape string
HINT:  Escape string must be empty or one character.

Fix

Use exactly one character as the escape character

WHEN When using LIKE ESCAPE.

Use exactly one character as the escape character
SELECT * FROM items WHERE name LIKE '50!%' ESCAPE '!';

Why this works

The ESCAPE clause requires exactly one character. Choose a character that does not appear in normal data.

Sources
Official documentation ↗

Class 22 — Data Exception

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